1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to laminated building panels, and more particularly to a prenotched building panel having a rigidifying splice plate, and to method for preparing the panel for shipment to an erection site where the panel is about to produce corner structures.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Wall panels formed from metal facing sheets and a backing, such as a liner sheet and an intermediate core, are used extensively in the construction of various types of enclosures. A prevalent trend in present day panel design is the bending of the panels to produce corner constructions of desired architectural appearance. Numerous methods have been proposed for bending such panels. See U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,440,615 (G. R. MEYERCORD, Jan. 2, 1923); 1,669,667 (J. LEVINE, May 15, 1928); 3,496,689 (M. E. NEREM, Feb. 24, 1970). Basically these methods consist of notching the panel to remove a segment of the backing and thus provide a V-groove having an apex adjacent to the exterior facing sheet. The exterior facing sheet is then bent along the base of the groove to move the exposed faces of the backing into juxtaposition.
It is known to notch and bend the building panel at the factory and to ship the thus formed corner assembly to the job site. It is also known to ship the building panels in a flat condition to the job site where the building panels are notched and bent and thereafter erected. The shipping cost of factory-bent building panels is excessive. Field-notching and field-bending of the panels requires special equipment, abnormally precise work operations and extra labor.